1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a medical image information system, an image server and a client, and more particularly, to a technique for associating a medical image with a diagnosis report.
2. Description of the Related Art
Medical image information systems have been put into practical use, each of which has an image server to store medical images produced by a medical image diagnosis apparatus such as an X-ray CT apparatus, an MRI apparatus or the like, an image viewer to display the stored medical images to be read by a doctor or the like, a report system to make a diagnosis report based on a result of the reading by the doctor or the like. In such medical image information systems, the doctor or the like prepares a diagnosis report by writing his/her opinions on the medical images displayed on the image viewer in an opinion column of the diagnosis, writing a result of diagnosis based on his/her opinions in a diagnosis column, and, if necessary, appending the medical images to the diagnosis report.
In connection with such medical image information systems, for example, JP-A-2005-301453 discloses that hyperlinks for link information on medical images stored in an image server are set for character strings specified in a diagnosis report. By setting the hyperlinks, it is possible to associate the diagnosis report with the medical images and start up an image viewer to display the medical images from the diagnosis.
Information on a storage location (path) of the medical images is necessary to set the hyperlinks in the diagnosis. Therefore, the hyperlinks can be essentially set only for the medical images that have been already stored in the image server. Accordingly, in order to set hyperlinks for medical images newly produced in the image viewer by a doctor or the like, it is necessary to set the hyperlinks in the diagnosis report after storing the produced new medical images in the image server. This may result in lowering of diagnosis efficiency.